‘Challenges to biodiversity conservation and associated ecosystem functions’
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1. Introduction
As defined by the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD) biodiversity is “the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and ecological complexes of which they are not part, diversity within species and of ecosystems” (IUCN, 2000).
The continued growth of human populations and per capita consumption have resulted in unsustainable exploitation of the Earth’s biological diversity, exacerbated by climate change, ocean acidification and other anthropogenic environmental impacts. The ecosystems exploited, provide essential services, including material goods such as food and timber; cultural and recreational benefits as well as providing other functions necessary for climate regulation, flood control and nutrient cycling. The key pressures to biodiversity loss are overexploitation, invasive alien species, pollution, climate change and the degradation and fragmentation of habitats. However, there are many challenges that effect the management of these pressures as a result of social and economic needs and as a result, further scientific research is required in order to best identify the distribution and appropriate management schemes for different areas.
Globally, the efforts to reduce anthropogenic impacts on ecosystems have been addressed by the United Nations CBD. The goal of reducing…

degradation of ecosystems and widespread deforestation for industrial purposes. The resources available for biodiversity conservation to protect all the endangered species are unfortunately inadequate (Myers 1996). It is therefore paramount to use these resources in the most effective ways possible. This literature review will focus on evaluating existing biodiversity budgets and the effectiveness of various investment approaches used in biodiversity conservation programs.
The issue of Biodiversity Conservation…

DISCUSS THE CHALLENGES ASSOCIATED WITH BIODIVERSITY LOSS FOR 21ST CENTURY CONSERVATION BIOLOGISTS AND SOCIETY AS A WHOLE
Although sustainable development has been at the forefront of international agenda for many years, we continue to focus on the growth of the economy without worrying about the impact on the environment. Currently, our ecological footprint (the area in hectares that we require to provide us with the ecological goods and services we use) is far exceeding our biocapacity (the actual…

comes to intensive farming systems, many rural farmers face a trade-off between agricultural production and biodiversity . In order to protect the biodiversity, farmers must sacrifice agricultural production. Hence, the challenge is to continuously expand food production while bearing no negative effects on biodiversity. These negative effects widely include deforestation, disrupting ecosystem integrity and species viability. In light of these issues, better farming technologies and natural resource…

is expected to be completely empty? In 2048 the whole ecosystem will be wiped out with no sign of life. This is incredibly alarming; the ocean is a huge resource for the world. Biodiversity is key to the survival of the ocean, however over the last few years the ocean has experienced an accelerating loss of species. Biodiversity is essential for the ecosystem, diversity of species enhance ecosystem productivity and stability. Marine ecosystems are a primary resource for increasing population it provides…

concept of ‘ecosystem services’ add to the theory and practice of conservation?
If we are managing ecosystems, then in theory, we need to also be managing people, essentially speaking, if we develop management tools that are effective and equitable and also meet the needs of people, then we really need to understand how people use and interact with their environments, how they value and prioritise those interactions and why. So the Millennium Ecosystems Assessment (2005) defines ecosystem services as…

fraction is rapidly being broken up and fragmented (Wright, 2005). This raises the urgent question of how fragmentation will impact on ecosystem function, the essential set of processes which maintain tropical forest ecosystems (Laurance et al., 2011).Ecosystem function can be defined as the processes that collectively contribute to the self-maintenance of an ecosystem
Owning to the species richness of genetic diversity particularly of tropical rain forest with a high proportion of endemics (Vianaet…

The effects of human activity on ecosystems and biodiversity
Agricultural Practice
Biodiversity is a measure of the diversity among organisms in different ecosystems. "Diversity" in this definition includes diversity within a species and among species, and among ecosystems.’
Monoculture is when a farmer produces or grows one single crop over a wide area. The advantages to the farmer of monoculture are, “the reduced plant competition for nutrients, space and solar radiation, control of unprofitable…

Conservation of Biodiversity in the face of the recently growing threat of Climate Change
Due to improved healthcare and sanitation, the size of human population is ever increasing with detrimental effects on the environment. The use of the planets resources and human disruption is currently in excess to what is considered sustainable, which has led to damage to the Earth’s flora and fauna. The issue of conservation has been long recognised. It takes many forms and can span from conservation of…

Assessment of Conservation of Biodiversity in Cambodia
1. Introduction Conservation of Biodiversity in Cambodia has been gathering momentum in the past few years in response to international conservation efforts and increased land degradation and loss (Conservation International 2004). International monetary institutions such as the World Bank and transnational NGOs such as Conservation International have been influential in changing forestry legislation in Cambodia (Reuters 2002). However…